Australian Energy Market Operator

AEMO operates Australia's National Electricity Market (NEM), the interconnected power system in Australia’s eastern and south-eastern seaboard, and the Wholesale Electricity Market (WEM) and power system in Western Australia.

AEMO operates gas retail markets in New South Wales and the Australian Capital Territory, Queensland, South Australia, Victoria, and Western Australia. AEMO also operates wholesale gas markets in south-eastern Australia, those being the Declared Wholesale Gas Market in Victoria (DWGM), the Short Term Trading Market in Adelaide, Brisbane and Sydney (STTM), and the Gas Supply Hub (GSH), whose trading locations are based at Wallumbilla in Queensland, and Moomba in South Australia. AEMO also operates the Natural Gas Services Bulletin Board (GBB), and is system operator of the Victorian Gas Declared Transmission System. AEMO is also responsible for Gas Services Information functions in Western Australia.

AEMO has worked in partnership with key organisations to progress investigations, analysis, pilot projects, and proof-of-concept trials that support AEMO’s responsibilities to operate the NEM market and power system in the long-term interests of consumers.

AEMO and ARENA

AEMO and the Australian Renewable Energy Agency (ARENA) signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) in May 2017 to facilitate collaboration between the organisations in areas of mutual interest such as power system security and reliability.

Hornsdale Wind Farm 2 FCAS Trial

This report outlines the findings of a trial developed under the AEMO/ARENA MOU, focusing on the first NEM wind farm to be registered and to operate in both energy and ancillary services markets. The Hornsdale Wind Farm 2 (HWF2) trial is the first in-market technical demonstration of a wind or solar farm providing frequency control ancillary services (FCAS) in the NEM. It was undertaken by AEMO and ARENA in conjunction with NEOEN (owner and operator of the Hornsdale group of projects) and Siemens-Gamesa Australia (equipment provider for the Hornsdale group of wind farms).

As a result of the trial, HWF2 is the first Australian wind farm to be registered and offering FCAS in the NEM. The full report is available here: